Gasolene-gun.



l. L- ANTHONY & W. S. BRADFORD.

GASULENE GUN.

APPLICATION FILED NOV- 7, 19.

1,269,574. Patented June 18, 1918.

UNITED STATES PTENT OFFICE.

JOHN L. ANTHONY AND WILLIAM S. BRADFORD, 0F HAYNES, ARKANSAS.

GASOLENE-GUN.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed November 7, 1917. Serial No. 200,775.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that we, JOHN L. ANTHONY ,and WILL'rAM S. BRADFORD, citizens of the United States, residing at Haynes, in the county of Lee, State of Arkansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inGasolene-Guns; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to the class of guns, and has particular reference to guns of large caliber for throwing heavy projectiles.

' The object of the invention is to construct a gun from which projectiles may be fired by the employment of a gas or gas forming fluid, such as any of the gas forming hydro carbons. In carrying out the invention we provide in the breech of the gun a gas chamber' within which the gas charge may be pumped or compressed behind a projectile, and then fired by a suitable spark producing mechanism."

It is furthermore an object of the invention to provide a particular form of breech mechanism for the loading of the gun, prior to the insertion of the firing charge.

With the above objects in view, and such others relating to the details of construction, as may hereinafter appear, our invention will now be fully set forth and described, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through the gun,

- Fig. 2 1s a transverse section therethrough, Fig. 3 is a further transverse sectlon showing the breech block retracted, and

Fig. 4 is a vertical longitudinal section through the breech.-

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 1 represents the breech of a gun, from which extends the barrel 2. The breech 1, is constructed of such size and form as to permit the construction at the rear end of the barrel 2 of a chamber 3, said chamber 3 constituting a charge and explosion chamber into which is slidable the breech block 4. Said breech block 4 may be operated by any .suitable lever mechanism which is conventionally indicated at 5, and enters the cham- :ber 3 through the side of the breech 1, so that the inner end thereof will enter a recess 6 upon the far side ofthe chamber 3, the

block being thus securely locked against movement under the explosion of a charge. Formed through the breech block 4 longitudmally of the gun is a shell chamber 7 W1th1n which the projectile is loaded (when the block 4 is withdrawn from the breech, and the chamber around its rear end has inserted a packing 8 which rests against the shoulder 9 formed in the shell chamber, the

packing 8 providin against the leakage of a charge prior to th, firing of the gun.

The gun is charged from a fuel supply tank 9 from which gasolene or other charge forming fluid is fed to a carbureter 10, the gas formed within the carbureter being pumped into the chamber 3 by means of any suitable pump which will place the charge under a proper firing pressure, the pump being conventionally indicated in the present case by the numeral 11. A spark plug 12 entered into the side of the chamber 3 is connected to a suitable power source and switch, the closing of the switch firing the charge to force the projectile through the barrel 2.

The projectiles which are fired by means of this gun may be readily placed by a variation of the amount of the charge, and the gun may be controlled and.fi-red by a crew with little danger from explosions and overheating of the gun. Also, the cost of operating a gun of this type is much less than the cost of operating a gun from which the projectiles are fired by means of explosives.

That we claim as our invention is 1. A gun comprising a barrel, a combus -tion chamber at the rear of the barrel, a

breech block transversely slidable between the barrel and combustion chamber and provided with a shell chamber adapted to aline with the bore of the barrel and to communicate with the combustion chamber, means for feeding a charge of explosive gas into the combustion chamber and means for firing the charge.

2. A gun including an explosion chamber, a barrel extending from one end of the ex plosion chamber and having its bore in communication therewith, a breech block transversely slidable through one side of the explosion chamber at the barrel end thereof and provided with a passage adapted to aline with the bore of the barrel and to communicate with the explosion chamber, means for feeding a charge of explosive fluid Into a l. .i

plosion chamber and having its bore in comm'un-ication therewith, a'brech block transversely slidable through one side of the explosion chamber at the barrel end thereof and provided with a passage adapted to 'faline with the bore of the barrel and to communicate with the explosion chamber, a

the charge.

packing sleeve disposed in said passage. means for feeding a charge of explosive fluid into said chamber and means for firing In testimony whereof, We aifix 'oursigna- "tures in the'presence of two witnesses.

. JOHN L. ANTHONY.

XVI-LLIAM S. BRADFORD. Witnesses:

' B. T. MANNING, E. M. HARROD. 

